Would You Like A Spot Of Tea N’ Honey?

I’ve been feeling a bit lacking in the sophistication department lately. Am I the only one who doesn’t really do tea time? I mean, I play it in the toy room on a weekly basis, but to actually sit and eat finger food and sip tea in mid-afternoon sounds delightful. I obviously have been missing out. I discovered boxes of Earl Grey Tea in my pantry this past week (I guess I was preparing for the zombie apocalypse). Quite honestly, tea was my husband’s obsession for quite sometime…Me? Well, I prefer to obsess over coffee, but, granted, I am the one who is up with the littles multiple times a night!

I haven’t made Thumprint Cookies in years, as a matter of fact these cookies spread a bit more than a traditional Thumbprint (but you’ll forgive me, right?). Believe it or not, one of the pickiest little ladies really enjoys honey! Which totally surprises me, considering she has turned her back on Macaroni and Cheese and peanut butters. Ugh that child! Anywho, I wanted to try and upgrade my girls’ and husband’s palates to a sophisticated dessert flavor. I wanted a hint of floral to reside on the back of our tongues and by golly these did the trick!

Tea N’ Honey Thumbprint Cookies are really intriguing because you can seriously taste the Earl Grey in the first bite. It is a fine process to infuse tea into baked goods and far worth the effort. Just plan on setting aside about 10 minutes of your time. I have tried just incorporating the tea directly into the cookie or cake batters, by dumping it in, but you really can’t taste it. So, the secret is to steep the tea in the butter you will use in your recipe. The trick is to add about 4 tbsp more to the pot than the recipe calls for because those tea bags will sop some of the butter up. The next time you are attending a ladies’ luncheon, bridal shower, or a girly event, provide the dessert and walk in with my Tea N’ Honey Thumbprint Cookies. I promise they will be a favorite and everyone will wonder how you got the floral flavors in the cookies. It’s a perfect pairing for tea time.

Just a little update: This fabulous and unique cookie recipe just placed as a finalist in the Sue B. Honey recipe contest! I didn’t score the grand prize of $500, but I will be receiving a Sue B Honey prize package!

Earl Grey Tea Butter

2. Remove from heat after 2 minutes of boiling and allow tea to steep about 5 minutes. Squeeze out tea bags and allow butter to come to room temperature (you may stick in freezer to hurry the process).

Prepare cream cheese and honey filling

1. In an electric mixer, beat softened cream cheese until smooth. 2. Add in honey. Then slowly add in powdered sugar. 3. Place in a piping bag or ziplock bag and put in the refrigerator.